The Portland daily press., 1887-08-22
Tardy Recognition of Genius.

The death Of Alyan Clark, of Cambridge.
Massachusetts, attracts attention TO another
instance of the attainment in later life of
fortune and fame, of which the earlier years
gave no indication. In politics rarely, in
military life more frequently, men who have
apparently long since disclosed the measure
of both their ambition and their abilities,
are lifted by fortuitous circumstances, by
the Developments unsupported genius, or by
combination of both, to an unexpected ele-
walton in the estimation of their fellows.
In political life President Cleveland is a
most striking illustration OF an obsure man
lifted suddenly by fortune; in military his
tory General Grant was most remarkable
s example Of the achievements of unsupported
genius operating under sudden and excep-
tional opportunity. Both of these men
reached the prime Of life without giving
hardly hint of the possibilities of their
lives. SO Alyan Clark reached middle life
and sent son to college before he had ever
directed his attention to the art of making
telescopes, in which he was to earn world
wide reputation and make for himself an
enduring place in the history Of astronomi-
cal science. Born in Ashfeld, Mass, in
painting. From 1896 to 1885 he was employed
at the Merrimac works at Lowell in design
ing patterns for calico. During all that Pc
Rod he kept up his practice as a painter, SO
that when he discontinued his business as a
calico designer and engraver, he went to Bos-
ton and established a studio on fremont
street, selecting Cambridge as a place of res
idence. For twenty years, or until he was
over forty years of age, he painted portraits
In Boston, making living and little be-
sides. As portrait painter he acquired con-
siderable reputation, and as this was the &C.
cupation Of his early fancy and later choice
1t was not to be expected that man of for
ty years would meet great success in new
business. But some time previous to this
his eldest son, George b. Clark, had returned
from college much interested in treatise on
Casting and Grinding the Speculum.' 1t
was natural that the boy should try to make
telescope, and that the father should be-
come interested too. They worked togeth-
er, and succeeded in making an instrument
From that time telescope making was the
business Of Alvan Clark. In 1850 he went to
Europe and spent great deal of his time
with Mr.. w. r. Dawes, the English astrono-
mer. While in his observatory, he discovered
new star, now known as companion to "99
Hercules" Soon after his return to this
country in 1860, he received from the Uni
versity Of Mississippi an order for an 1871
inch telescope, larger than any he had yet
made. The breaking out of the war rendered
the Southern University unable to purchase
1t, and the telescope became the property of
the University of Chicago. With this glass
a scientist who had before that been using
the largest and best refracting telescope of
European manufacture in the world, dscov-
cred twenty stars in the nebula of Orion
which had never before reached telescope
vision. 1t was with this instrument that Mr..
Alvan G. Clark, Mr.. Clark's son, in 1862 dis
covered the companion of Sirius, receiving
the reward of the Lalande medal from the
French Academy of Sciences and $12O in
gold. Then followed the construction of
two glasses of twenty-six inches each, one
being disposed of to the University of Vir-
ginia and the other placed in the observatory
at Washington. With the latter instrument
Professor Hall discovered that the planet
Mars had two satellites, and received the re-
ward for the greatest astronomical achieve
ment of that year. The construction of such
instruments was great achievement for a
man who had never seen lens in the pro-
cess OF construction outside of his own shop.
During the war the firm, for Mr.. Clark had
MS TWO sons as partners, were kept
busy turning out field glasses for the
Federal Army. Then the fame of the
Clarks began to be world wide. When Dom
Pedro of Brazil visited this country a few
years ago he said there were three nersons
in Cambridge he had strong desire to SEQ
viz, Mr.. Longfellow, Professor Agassiz and
Mr. Alvin Clark. In 1879 the Emperor of
Russia had heard of him, and when the oh
seryatory of Pulkowa wanted a teescope
greater than any other in the world the CON
tract was given to the American. The tele-
scope was then the largest in existence.
costing $4,000, having clear aperture of
30 inches, 45 feet focus and weighing in the
iron cell 41S pounds. 1t possessed magni-
flying power of 1000 diameters, and was
inches longer in diameter than the instru-
ment at Princeton Observatory, few inches
larger than the Washington telescope. both
OF which were made by Alvan Clark 81 Sons.
VI the last achievement of tie Clarks-the
construction of the Lick telescope, every
one mas heard. With its thirty-six inch glass
IL is the most powerful instrument in the
World' ana scientists Of the whole civilized
globe are impatiently awaiting the time
when through the clear atmosphere of Cali